Masked Surprise
by FLASOK
Summary: She dropped the mask to the floor with a clatter not even caring that it cracked as it hit the ground. Tears were imminently approaching. She had to get out of there fast; it was too much.


**A/N- Hey readers. I've had this idea in my head for a while and I decided to write it down :D So, this is a cute little one-shot. What you need to know is Aang hasn't seen Katara in a few years because Hakoda told him not to see Katara again. Hakoda was just worried that Aang wouldn't be home enough to provide for Katara. Aang had already proposed to Katara, but Hakoda wouldn't let them get married and confiscated the necklace. Being the respectful guy he is, Aang left for the Fire Nation to attend Peace Meetings and junk. Meanwhile, Hakoda is throwing parties for Katara to try and get her a husband, but she refuses to pick because her heart is set on Aang. But let's see if a special guest at her party will change her mind. NOT ZUTARA. Good gosh people, what don't you understand about FLASOK? XDDDD  
Alright, enough stalling. STORY TIME! 8DDD R&R!!!! **

Masked Surprise

Katara frowned sourly with her arms crossed over her chest while anger and sadness boiled in her stomach. The anger was making a more obvious appearance however as she scanned the party that was thrown for her sake in disgust. She didn't want to be here, and that wish made itself painfully clear to Hakoda. He sighed deeply before making his way over to his irritated daughter. He hesitated a moment before placing a strong hand on her shoulder. She didn't look up at her father; instead, she glared at the wall near the entrance.

"Katara, I've done everything. I've thrown parties, I've introduced you to many a man, and you still refuse to pick! What else do you want me to do?" he asked desperately. It was then that Katara decided to look up at him, her eyes flashing angrily in the dim lamplights forcefully reminding Hakoda of his wife when she was angry. The already present sad pit in his stomach tunneled even lower.

"I don't want you to do anything. I don't want ANY of this. I've already told you whom I want," she replied icily, her words cutting Hakoda's ears fiercely. Hakoda grimaced. He would've said something if he hadn't already been through countless arguments with her. He would have said something if she would have been listening. None of these things were magically going to disappear or happen however, so he walked away, feeling his presence was no longer necessary, or wanted.

Katara turned her attention to her toes and shot bullets into them as if this whole mess was their fault. A soft tap on her shoulder interrupted her intense death glaring and she whipped around angrily, ready to tell her father to go away and leave her alone for the rest of the night, only to find that it was not her father. Instead, a young man, tall and wiry was standing over her. He was wearing aqua robes that were simple yet elegant and a sapphire mask that was intricately carved rested comfortably on the upper half of his face just below an untidy mop of dark brown hair. Her surprise at his appearance quickly faded and her expression became bored and annoyed. It was just another guy trying to get on her good side. She looked up at him and tried to display that his presence was unwanted without saying so.

"Yes?" she asked in a dull, uninterested tone. The man held out his hand wordlessly to her, silently asking for a dance. She blinked twice in surprise at the offer, but quickly waved it away.

"No thank you," she sighed and waited for him to walk away. He stayed where he was, gazing down at her silently. She frowned at his persistence, but she wasn't going to lose this fight.

"No thank you. I don't want to dance," she clarified, a twinge of annoyance coming through in her tone. The man tipped his head to the side slightly as if to say, 'please?' Knowing he wasn't going to leave, she reluctantly stood up and took his hand with a sigh that came out more as a grumble.

"Fine. ONE dance," she agreed. The man smiled a little before sweeping her away towards the dance floor, quickly, but gracefully. With a flourish of his wrist, he spun her around to face him when they reached the designated square for dancing and looped an arm around her back, lacing his fingers with hers.

There was silence between the two as they danced in endless circles together while the music played. Katara could only hope a slow song wouldn't be played tonight. Luckily, the song had just started and she had only agreed to one dance. As soon as this song was over, she could sulk in peace.

Eventually, the silence became bothersome, so she broke it with a question, refusing to meet the man's eyes. She wanted to seem as though she was not interested in the slightest. One glimmer of false hope and the man would just gone on with his attempts to be chummy with her.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" she asked, not curious in the slightest. The man shrugged in response. She felt the gesture more than saw it.

"I'm glad you're not enjoying yourself too much. This party is a waste of your time." She said coldly. Predictably, the man said nothing.

"You've got a nice mask. It makes me feel sorry that you wasted good money for it. It was a bad idea to throw this silly Masquerade party. Everyone just buys a mask that they don't even need because I'm not picking a suitor. There's only one person I love and I'm not giving up on him," she said to the man focusing on everything but his face.

"I refused to wear a mask myself as you can tell. Why would I bother? I'll just look like I'm enjoying myself when I'm not. Best not to give everyone false hope," she grumbled only to find her face heating up in embarrassment because she'd discovered that she'd been ranting. The fact that he was a complete stranger didn't help to console her.

"Sorry. I shouldn't be complaining to you," she mumbled. The man's lips turned up into a small smile. She sensed the little movement and accidentally looked up into his face before she could stop herself. She caught his eye and froze, half in horror at what she'd done and half in surprise at what she saw. There was something peculiar about them, but she couldn't put a finger on it. The colors of his irises were invisible-the mask made sure of that- much to her dismay. If she could've see them, maybe that would've helped her to see if this man was familiar to her or not. His general appearance did nothing to help her. She didn't know any tall, dark-haired men. And yet…

"Do I … know you?" she asked softly. At this, the man grinned widely and she nearly gasped for it was a grin that she knew, one that she knew awfully well and hadn't seen in many years. They stopped dancing. Her heart pounded frantically in her chest and she swallowed, her head spinning.

"A-Aang?" she whispered softly. Slowly, she reached up and pushed his mask up, searching for that familiar blue arrow that would appear any second. Her hands shook with anticipation, her heart beating in her throat, ears, head and chest all at the same time only to stop entirely at what she saw, or rather, didn't see. Disappointment dropped like a two-ton weight in her stomach and tears blurred her vision as she stared at the man's arrow-less forehead. She dropped the mask to the floor with a clatter not even caring that it cracked as it hit the ground. Tears were imminently approaching. She had to get out of there fast; it was too much. She turned to do so, but the man grabbed her wrists firmly preventing her escape. She struggled against his strong grip and kicked his shins, trying to make him let go. She would have water-whipped him in a heartbeat, but her hands were held firmly preventing that as well as her escape.

"Let me go!" she shrieked, her voice cracking with sobs, tears spilling freely down her face. No one seemed to notice the scene going on, all the attention was away from the dance floor and the music was too loud. She struggled harder, just wanting to get away from this horrible place. Then the man did something that made her stop trying to escape. He took one of her hands and placed it on the very top of his forehead. The skin was damp and cool and she soon figured out why when he forced her hand down, her fingers dragging across the skin underneath them. The damp stuff turned out to be face paint and once removed blue streaks appeared under her fingertips. Heart pounding with rekindled hope, she wiped the rest away with a quick swipe to reveal the unmistakable arrow tattoo of the Avatar. Aang smiled warmly at her.

"Hello Katara."

Tears welled up in her eyes again, but for an entirely different reason. She looked up at him in wonder before embracing him tightly, sobbing into his shoulder. He stroked her hair silently as she cried until she finally surfaced, gulping down breaths and wiping her eyes.

"Aang. You came back for me," she said thickly, wiping more tears from her eyes. Aang smiled down at her lovingly.

"You didn't think your dad could keep me away from you did you?" he asked quietly, chuckling a bit. Katara giggled too and embraced him again, breathing in the scent of him that she missed so much but was still just as wonderful as it had been.

"I missed you. It's been long…too long," she murmured. Aang mumbled a little, 'hmm,' in agreement.

"You've changed a lot," he noted from above her. She removed her face from his shirt and looked up at him incredulously.

"Me? What about you? You're taller than me now, you're voice is deeper, and your face isn't cute and round anymore," she said pinching a cheek, though not getting much between her fingers because they'd thinned out nicely with maturity . His jaw was more defined now adding to his older appearance. Aang just laughed a little, a musical one all the same and she stood there listening to it, feeling his chest rumble with it. She looked up into his face, drinking in his appearance and her eyes flew up to his untidy, dark, hair.

"What's this all about?" she asked with a grin, ruffling it a little. Aang smiled back, holding her a little closer to him.

"You think I would've gotten in here with my bald, tattooed self?" he replied with a grin. "That, and all those dawn-till-dusk meetings didn't give me anytime to shave it off regularly." Katara rolled her eyes playfully and reached up to stroke it. It was soft and thick, refusing to be manipulated into a reasonable position and instead, stuck out at odd angles in every direction. Somehow though, the tousled, wild look seemed to fit Aang.

"You look really good with it," she commented, pushing his bangs aside to further reveal the arrow underneath. Aang chuckled.

"Don't get used to it. I'm shaving it off as soon as I get the chance. It's against my culture you know," he said in a joking tone, even though he meant it. Katara smirked.

"Oh, I will. But I'm looking forward to seeing my bald Aang again," she replied. Aang smiled and leaned his head down so his forehead gently touched hers, his skin warm against hers.

"I missed you. More than you'll ever know," he whispered in a more serious tone. Katara could feel his breath against her face, warm and moist.

"I think I have a pretty good idea," she whispered back. They stood like that silently, just enjoying the other's presence, breathing in the familiar scent of the other.

"You know," Katara murmured, breaking the silence, "I must have met hundreds of guys. But they all had the same problem. Every single one" A smile played at her lips.

"Oh?" Aang questioned, curious as to what this problem could be.

"Yeah," Katara continued, then she looked up into his eyes and cupped his face. "They weren't you." Then the distance between their faces, which wasn't much to begin with, disappeared. Both surrendered their thoughts to bliss as the other's lips caressed their own in a kiss long awaited. Aang pulled Katara in closer from around her waist, deepening the kiss as he did, tipping his head slightly to the side. One of Katara's arms was draped over his shoulder while her other hand tangled in his shaggy hair bringing his face closer. She had to stand on tip toe to properly reach his lips. They both sighed the breath they'd been holding in ever since Aang had first left feeling as though an invisible shackle had finally been broken.

Hakoda watched the scene from a few meters away with a few other curious guests. He should have been angry, furious even, that the Avatar was here. Instead however, he smiled. He had seen how happy Katara was, happier than she had been in a very long time and he knew he'd been wrong in trying to force her to marry someone she didn't love. He watched them and knew that they truly belonged with each other. This was true love. Even after all those years, they were still as in love with each other as the day they had been separated.

Hakoda reached into his pocket and pulled out the necklace that Aang had made for Katara before he'd left and ran his thumb over the expertly carved patterns shaping waves on the ocean and clouds in the sky. He smiled to himself and decided that it was time for the necklace to be in the possession of the one whom it was meant for.

**A/N- I thought you should know that I changed the ending, but believe me, this one is so much better. X__X Hope you enjoyed that. I loved writing it. LOL Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about Water, Wind, and Clouds. I was just taking a break. I'll get back to it soon. I promise. But you should know that I'm going on vacation for a week soon, so there may not be some for a while. Be patient! ;D**


End file.
